Word by Word: The Secret Life of Dictionaries

by Kory Stamper

in varying shades of that noncolor, taupe.

if you needed to make or take a phone call, for whatever horrible reason,

Lexicography moves so slowly that scientists classify it as a solid.

We are just observers, and the goal is to describe, as accurately as possible, as much of the language as we can.

Good manners, good morality, and good grammar all go hand in hand.

In plain language, even peevers mess it up.

We think of English as a fortress to be defended, but a better analogy is to think of English as a child.

“You have got to be shitting me.”

This is Abby

you will always have a mental hangnail that catches on certain words and hurts until you attend to it.